You probably know the image of a mushroom with a bright red cap adorned with little white spots. That’s because this depiction of a mushroom seems like it’s out of an old fairy tale or, these days, a Nintendo game. But this fantastical mushroom does in fact exist in the real world; it’s known as an amanita muscaria, or more commonly as the fly agaric. And amongst the mycology community — the one concerned with the study of fungi — this mushroom has been deemed poisonous, regardless of how whimsical it looks.
Of course, not all mushrooms are harmful; there are hundreds of varieties out there, and many are safely edible raw or if prepared correctly. I learned this all from John SirJessie, a certified mushroom inspector, who led a foraging excursion as part of an outdoor pop-up dinner I attended, hosted by the Hotel Madeline in Telluride, CO.
It takes a little knowledge to separate the flavorful from the toxic — especially when sorting through the hundreds of species of russula. “Once you know it’s a russula, you can taste it. If it tastes peppery on the tip of your tongue within a minute or so, don’t eat it. If it’s not peppery, you can eat it,” SirJessie taught us. “Being a gilled mushroom, there’s a lot of look-a-likes, so it’s not an easy task.”
Fortunately, we had his expertise to guide us through the forest and meadow as we foraged for edibles that grow at an elevation of 10,230 ft. We gathered all kinds of mushrooms — russulas, hawk wings, chanterelles and copper tops, to name a few. We even took a couple of the red-capped fly agarics with us; though poisonous, they’re fun to look at — plus they’d led us to some nice porcinis, which we gathered as well.
The chefs of the Hotel Madeline took our bounty of fungi and combined them with the other ingredients they’d brought to make an exquisite six-course meal — each dish paired with a fine complementary wine. However, a couple of mushrooms were left on the display table — the red fly agarics — and my curiosity started to get hungry.
“If you boil it at least twenty minutes — some say once, some say twice, change the water and boil it again — then it’s perfectly edible,” SirJessie told me. “It destroys all the toxins.”
However, Chef Patrick Laguens smiled and said to me, “If you were to eat the red mushroom and you weren’t to boil it, you just need to throw up in a certain period of time, so you don’t die. Otherwise, it’s a fun night.”
I wasn’t quite ready for an unpredictable “fun night” — fly agarics are known by some for their psychoactive trips, after all — and so I boiled the red magical mushroom as instructed. After the first 20-minute boil, all of the poisonous red coloring was gone, but I dumped the broth and started another boil with fresh water to be safe.
The end result was a much smaller mushroom, shriveled but supposedly safe to eat. I cut myself a piece, put in my mouth, and survived. The texture wasn’t unlike anything I’d had before; in fact, after all that, its texture and taste reminded me of generic canned button mushrooms you get on a slice of pizza. (Verdict: Two out of five stars.)
With that said, preparing this particular poisonous mushroom for consumption might not be worth your time — because you’ll still need to spend more time to sauté them in butter afterwards, if you want to really make them tasty.
Erik Trinidad is the author of Fancy Fast Food: Ironic Recipes with No Bun Intended, based off his popular food humor blog.
Fahne Brasilien…
[...]very few web sites that transpire to be comprehensive beneath, from our point of view are undoubtedly very well really worth checking out[...]…
churrascaria macapa…
[...]one of our guests not too long ago proposed the following website[...]…
Internetagentur Hamburg…
[...]that would be the end of this write-up. Here you?ll discover some sites that we assume you?ll appreciate, just click the links over[...]…
Blogs ou should be reading…
[...]Here is a Great Blog You Might Find Interesting that we Encourage You[...]……
Miami video production…
[...]we like to honor numerous other net internet sites on the internet, even though they aren?t linked to us, by linking to them. Beneath are some webpages really worth checking out[...]…
breaking news…
[...]the time to read or pay a visit to the subject material or internet sites we have linked to below the[...]…
Great website…
[...]we like to honor many other internet sites on the web, even if they aren’t linked to us, by linking to them. Under are some webpages worth checking out[...]……
cab business cards…
[...]always a massive fan of linking to bloggers that I appreciate but do not get a great deal of link appreciate from[...]…
Sources…
[...]check below, are some totally unrelated websites to ours, however, they are most trustworthy sources that we use[...]……
Websites you should visit…
[...]below you’ll find the link to some sites that we think you should visit[...]……
Great website…
[...]we like to honor many other internet sites on the web, even if they aren’t linked to us, by linking to them. Under are some webpages worth checking out[...]……
Great website…
[...]we like to honor many other internet sites on the web, even if they aren’t linked to us, by linking to them. Under are some webpages worth checking out[...]……
Related……
[...]just beneath, are numerous totally not related sites to ours, however, they are surely worth going over[...]……
homes for sale Indianapolis…
I was suggested this blog by my cousin. I am not sure whether this post is written by him as no one else know such detailed about my trouble. You’re wonderful! Thanks!…
Recommeneded websites…
[...]Here are some of the sites we recommend for our visitors[...]……
Read was interesting, stay in touch……
[...]please visit the sites we follow, including this one, as it represents our picks from the web[...]……
ios…
…
Gems form the internet…
[...]very few websites that happen to be detailed below, from our point of view are undoubtedly well worth checking out[...]……
download movies…
[...]Every after inside a although we decide on blogs that we read. Listed below are the most recent web pages that we select [...]…
restaurante macapa…
[...]Here is a superb Blog You may Discover Fascinating that we Encourage You[...]…
Sell Domain Names…
[...]Here is a great Blog You might Discover Interesting that we Encourage You[...]…
Read was interesting, stay in touch……
[...]please visit the sites we follow, including this one, as it represents our picks from the web[...]……
Great website…
[...]we like to honor many other internet sites on the web, even if they aren’t linked to us, by linking to them. Under are some webpages worth checking out[...]……
Press Release…
[...]just beneath, are many entirely not connected web-sites to ours, having said that, they are certainly really worth going over[...]…
how to cure sore throat…
[...]please take a look at the sites we stick to, including this 1, as it represents our picks from the web[...]…
Disney…
[...]although internet sites we backlink to beneath are considerably not related to ours, we really feel they are basically worth a go via, so have a look[...]…
locksmith in katy tx…
Valuable information. Lucky me I found your site by accident, and I’m shocked why this accident didn’t happened earlier! I bookmarked it….
Recommeneded websites…
[...]Here are some of the sites we recommend for our visitors[...]……
Souls in the Waves…
Fantastic Early morning, I just stopped in to visit your website and imagined I’d say I experienced myself….
Recommeneded websites…
[...]Here are some of the sites we recommend for our visitors[...]……
plumbing in houston…
[...]just beneath, are quite a few totally not connected web pages to ours, nevertheless, they may be certainly worth going over[...]…
[...]that {is the|will be the|may be the|could be the|would be the} {end|finish} of this {article|write-up|post|report}. {Here|Right here} {you’ll|you will} {find|discover|locate|uncover|come across|obtain} some {sites|websites|web sites|internet sit…
[...]Every after inside a whilst we pick blogs that we study. Listed below are the most up-to-date web-sites that we choose [...]…
football boots…
[...]that will be the end of this article. Here you will obtain some sites that we consider you will enjoy, just click the hyperlinks over[...]…
commercial katy locksmith…
Appreciating the time and effort you put into your site and detailed information you present. It’s great to come across a blog every once in a while that isn’t the same old rehashed material. Fantastic read! I’ve bookmarked your site and I’m includ…
Sites we Like……
[...] Every once in a while we choose blogs that we read. Listed below are the latest sites that we choose [...]……
youtube.com/watch?v=RxIV2uXULU0…
[...]below you?ll find the link to some internet sites that we believe you should visit[...]…
Visitor recommendations…
[...]one of our visitors recently recommended the following website[...]……
youtube.com/watch?v=4nuf4Wb0ziA…
[...]please stop by the websites we stick to, including this one particular, as it represents our picks from the web[...]…
tool…
Thanks for your submission. I would also love to comment that the first thing you will need to carry out is find out if you really need credit repair. To do that you will have to get your hands on a replica of your credit rating. That should never be d…
Online Article……
[...]The information mentioned in the article are some of the best available [...]……
galvanized wire…
[...]Wonderful story, reckoned we could combine some unrelated data, nevertheless definitely worth taking a look, whoa did a single find out about Mid East has got a lot more problerms as well [...]…
locksmith toronto…
This is very fascinating, You’re an excessively skilled blogger. I have joined your feed and look forward to in the hunt for extra of your magnificent post. Also, I have shared your site in my social networks!…
Review of Sentry Surveillance Kennesaw…
[...]we came across a cool web site that you could possibly take pleasure in. Take a search if you want[...]…
za³ó¿ spulke…
[...]Here are a number of the sites we advise for our visitors[...]…
φυσίγγια κυνηγίου…
[...]check beneath, are some entirely unrelated websites to ours, even so, they may be most trustworthy sources that we use[...]…
Sites we Like……
[...] Every once in a while we choose blogs that we read. Listed below are the latest sites that we choose [...]……
Escrow…
[...]below you?ll discover the link to some web pages that we believe you should visit[...]…
Sites we Like……
[...] Every once in a while we choose blogs that we read. Listed below are the latest sites that we choose [...]……
iphone Accessories…
[...]that would be the finish of this article. Here you will obtain some web pages that we assume you will appreciate, just click the links over[...]…
Visitor recommendations…
[...]one of our visitors recently recommended the following website[...]……